


turn a page

by inlovewithimpossibility



Series: cerys' quarantine and chill fics [2]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Quarantine and Chill Fic Drive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-23
Updated: 2020-03-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:34:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23287105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inlovewithimpossibility/pseuds/inlovewithimpossibility
Summary: Oliver cannot foresee what will happen when he picks the blonde at the bar to hit on that night but it turns out that girl is about to completely flip his world on its head.[a college au wherein 'ollie' grows with the help of a new friend]
Relationships: Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak
Series: cerys' quarantine and chill fics [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1667249
Comments: 89
Kudos: 385
Collections: Quarantine and Chill Fic Drive 2020





	turn a page

**Author's Note:**

> This one's just a fun, well-worn trope but I hope you enjoy nonetheless. Please let me know if you do by leaving a kudos/comment, it makes my day to hear from you!

The bar is where Oliver finds himself most nights.

College is hard, far harder than he ever expected, and the only thing that chases away his regret each time he sees another bad test score is the booze he drinks each night.

The bar is also filled with girls most nights, just like the gorgeous one waiting for a drink next to him, and the alcohol in Oliver’s system makes him even bolder than usual as he sidles up next to the intriguing blonde.

“Hey there gorgeous, what’s a beautiful girl like you doing all alone at the bar?” Oliver smirks, his eyes roaming up and down her curves.

He doesn’t really know what’s endearing him to her. She’s really not his usual type but there are a million leggy brunettes in this club. This girl is different, intriguing somehow.

“Avoiding sleazes like you.” Her response is biting and it takes Oliver back for a second before he laughs, leaning on the bar.

“Oh come on, you don’t mean that. I’m Oliver but my friends call me Ollie, you go to Harvard?” He asks and watches as the girl sighs, turning to face him fully.

“MIT. Computer Science and Cyber Security.” She replies and Oliver lets out a low whistle.

“Dang. So you’re the queen of pirated movies then?” He asks and the girl lets out a laugh, obviously unintentional if the blush that spreads over her cheeks quickly after is any indication.

“I’m just a walking, talking Napster really.” She smirks and Oliver laughs. “What about you?”

“Harvard. Business.” He explains and he’s unable to stop himself from wincing a little at the idea.

“Oh, now there’s a story behind that.” The mystery girl smiles, adjusting in her seat a little as she scrutinizes him and Oliver sighs.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to…” He starts but he’s interrupted by the hand that she throws up.

“No! Oliver, I am not calling you Ollie by the way because it’s an awful nickname. Oliver, you just got ten times more interesting. Although, ten times zero is still zero but I can ignore that for now.” She rambles and Oliver regards her for a second. He cannot wrap his head around why he feels so connected to this girl who is in every way the opposite of his type. She’s small and cute and talks at a million miles a minute but also, she’s endearing and just so _real._

Oliver’s missed that.

“You really want the sob story of a trust fund baby?” He asks, raising a skeptical eyebrow but she scrutinizes him back just as hard, her head tilting as she regards him.

“Let’s say I’m just trying to see a few different perspectives recently.” She replies and Oliver smiles, enjoying the way the light catches in her eyes when she smiles.

“Alright, I’ll make you a deal.” He tells her and she smiles, straightening up in her seat a little. “I will give you my story if we get out of here and go somewhere else.”

The girl frowns a little, her eyes narrowing and Oliver keeps his best charming smile on.

“Okay, come on, there’s a great ice cream parlor just down the road.” She tells him and Oliver freezes for a second. Ice cream isn’t really what he had in mind but he can’t say he wouldn’t be happy with a few scoops of cookie dough right now.

“You have to tell me your name first.” He comments as she stands, grabbing her jacket from the back of the stool.

“Oh!” She freezes and Oliver can’t help but smile as she turns to him, eyes bright and smile lighting up her face. She extends her hand out towards him and bounces on her toes a little as she introduces herself.

“Felicity. Felicity Smoak.”

* * *

“You peed on a cop car?!” Felicity asks incredulously as she sits across from him in the empty ice cream parlor. She’s laughing as she eats her mint chop chip, completely carefree and Oliver finds that he just can’t look away. It’s so refreshing to be around a girl who isn’t watching her every move.

“Not my finest moment.” Oliver replies and Felicity laughs loudly. “Oh come on, tell me you haven’t done anything rebellious ever?”

“Of course I have. I’m just subtler about it. It’s nothing you’d ever find in my non-existent criminal record. But yeah, a girl doesn’t grow up in Vegas and not know how to get into trouble every once in a while.” She smirks and Oliver chuckles, not believing for a second that she’s done anything to match the level of his misdeeds.

“I love Vegas.” He tells her and she laughs, humming as she eats another spoonful of her ice cream. She’s slow to draw the spoon out of her mouth and Oliver is unable to look away as the metal passes through her red lips.

“Of course you do, pretty boy. It’s exactly your kind of scene.” She grins and Oliver frowns, leaning back in his chair.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He asks and Felicity smiles, taking a deep breath as she sits up in her chair.

“Vegas is a feeding ground for the young, rich and idle. You are literally every casino’s main demographic. I hate to break it to you, but you’re a walking stereotype.” She tells him and then scoops the last part of her ice cream into her mouth.

“Does insulting the guys you meet normally work?” He wonders, looking at Felicity as he tilts his head. He just can’t work her out.

“Couldn’t tell you. This isn’t usually my scene.” She shrugs and then reaches into her bag. She pulls out a receipt, a pen, and her wallet. Scribbling on the back of the receipt, she passes it over to him before dropping five dollars on the table, presumably for her ice cream. “If you want to do more with your time than get drunk and disappoint Mommy and Daddy, I tutor in my free time. Think about it, pretty boy.”

With that, she grabs her jacket and leaves with one last smile thrown over her shoulder.

Oliver watches her disappear around the corner before he looks down at the receipt in his hands, finding a phone number with her name written next to it. He can’t help but smile at the small smiley face she’s drawn in the corner as well.

He foots his end of the bill and gathers his own jacket, placing the receipt safely within the pocket. He checks he has his phone before he walks out of the parlor, wondering if that interaction may not have just changed his life forever.

_At least let me know you got home safe – O_

_Don’t you worry about me, pretty boy. I didn’t grow up in Vegas and not learn how to look after myself._

_Alright, Brainiac._

_I hate that._

_Almost as much as I hate pretty boy?_

_More._

_Debatable._

* * *

It takes him a week and another F in a class to call Felicity.

He hasn’t been sure if he wants to try and clean up his act. If he does, that means that if he fails, that’s actually on him and his inability. Not just his lack of effort and that’s a scary thought.

But as he stares at the ‘F’ in the corner of his page, he can’t help but think of the disappointed look on his father’s face from his visit back home over summer. The sigh as he realized he would have to pull more strings to find yet another college to send Oliver to.

He calls Felicity as he walks back to his apartment after class.

“Hey pretty boy, you finally decide you need some help?” Her voice is light, airy and he can practically hear the smile on her face as she talks.

“This is gonna be a challenge, Brainiac. I’m failing all of my math and science classes and barely passing all of the others.” He tells her but instead of the laugh of mockery or the sigh he’s expecting, Felicity is silent until she speaks again.

“Then I guess we have a lot of work to do.”

There’s a steely determination to her voice that makes Oliver take a deep breath and smile. He can do with this. With Felicity, he can do this.

“This is where you study?” Oliver asks on Monday as he approaches Felicity in a small but bustling café in between their two campuses and overlooking the river. It’s pretty in a quaint sort of way and there’s a woman behind the counter with curly hair who regards Felicity with a fond expression whenever they catch each other’s eye.

“Take a seat, pretty boy. There’s a method to my madness.” Felicity smiles and Oliver takes the plunge as he slides into the booth.

Once he’s settled, she hands him a folder full of paper. On top is a detailed schedule, showing his class schedule interspersed with study times, sessions with Felicity herself, time for exercise, and even space to socialize. Everything is organized to the last second but there’s still plenty of time for Oliver to do what he loves _and_ get eight hours of sleep a night.

He’d be lying if he didn’t disclose that he thinks Felicity might be a little bit magic.

“No, pretty boy.” She snorts, taking the pile of paper from him and revealing the next page to show a study plan organized by class. “Just organized.”

“And the coffee shop?” Oliver asks again, making Felicity grin.

“Every good worker needs a motivator. Mine just happens to be Lyla’s incredible cinnamon buns. Seriously, they’re the best in the city.” She smiles and Oliver freezes for a second, unable to miss how the light dances across her fair cheek. 

* * *

They meet three times a week at the coffee shop.

Felicity is more friendly with the owner than Oliver first realized. She’s a veteran named Lyla who does indeed make the best cinnamon rolls Oliver’s ever tasted. Her husband, John, a tree trunk of a man is also a veteran and he runs a gym down the street, but he often pops in to visit the café during the day with the couple’s adorable toddler daughter, Sara. The little spitball is full of energy and adores Felicity, always eager to show off what she’s learned at pre-school to her blonde friend.

They hole themselves up in a booth in the corner, books spread out across the table and their laptops always running. They work for hours and Oliver finds that when he applies himself, the concepts come easily. He needs help with the math side of stuff but Felicity has a way of explaining things to him that just makes everything make sense. She relates it back to things that he understands like baseball or cars or running and Oliver finds that his test grades are slowly on the up and up.

It’s a cold Wednesday in December and Oliver finds himself rushing from class to meet Felicity at Lyla’s. He’s clasping a piece of paper in his hand tightly as he weaves through the people on the street, knowing that he most likely looks like a crazy person but he doesn’t care. He just needs to get to Felicity so that he can show her the amazing news.

The bell above the door jangles loudly as he pushes through it, his eyes immediately searching for Felicity and finding her waiting in their booth, writing something up from her computer.

“I did it!” He calls as he walks over and Felicity looks up at his familiar voice, raising an inquisitive eyebrow but he just shoves the piece of paper in her direction, a proud grin on his face as he hands it over. He watches her eyes search the test and clocks the exact moment she notices the big A written on the top right corner.

She’s out of the booth in seconds, flinging herself into his arms and Oliver laughs as he catches her, squeezing her tightly as he lifts her off of the ground.

“I’m so proud of you! I knew you could do it! Oh my goodness, Oliver! This is amazing!” She grins and Oliver can only grin back as he holds her tightly in his arms and swings her back and forth, her legs flying through the air seeing as she’s so light.

“I couldn’t have done it without you.” He tells her as he sets her back down on her feet and she rolls her eyes, swatting his shoulder.

“As if. This was all you Oliver, all I did was give you a push in the right direction.” She smiles and Oliver gazes at her affectionately, bending down to pull her into a less enthusiastic hug, breathing in her smell and the feeling of her warmth.

“Agree to disagree.” He whispers softly in her hair but he can’t help but grin again when she turns and plants a kiss on his cheek.

* * *

“I can’t believe you’re not going back home for the holidays,” Oliver tells her later. They’re at his apartment and she’s lying on his bed as he packs seeing as he’s leaving tomorrow. Classes don’t officially finish until Friday but he’s had that free this semester so his dad is sending the private jet tomorrow afternoon.

Over the past few weeks, he’s found himself seeking Felicity out less for work and more socially. Whilst they’re still working hard on his schoolwork, Oliver finds himself asking her over to watch movies or for dinner more and more. He just enjoys her company, and he likes how they’re not putting labels on anything; they’re just being.

“I already missed Hanukkah and it’s not like we celebrate Christmas. No, I’ll just stay here and get started on my work for next semester. Avoid the inevitable arguments with my mom, enjoy the empty campus, and most importantly, empty coffee shops.” She smiles, stretching her arms above her head and Oliver laughs, throwing another t-shirt into his bag.

“And you’re sure you don’t want to come to Starling with me?” He asks. He’s probably asked her a million times since she revealed her vacation plans but he hates the idea of her here all alone.

“No. You go home, enjoy being with your family. Bathe in the inevitable waves of praise they will lather upon you for finally getting your act together.” She jokes, turning onto her side to rest her head in her hand and Oliver laughs.

“They’d understand a hell of a lot more if you came with. I’m sure they’d love to meet the girl who caused this change in me.” He tells her and Felicity rolls her eyes, catching his hand as he goes to walk back towards his closet.

“Stop selling yourself short. You did this. I merely helped.” She tells him and Oliver rolls his eyes.

“Believe what you want but I’m still thanking the heavens for placing the smartest girl in her generation in my path right when I needed her.” He grins, leaning down to kiss her cheek.

This kind of easy affection between them has been building over the months they’ve known each other. As Oliver spent more and more time with Felicity, he realized that she’s really the only person he spends any time with anymore. He doesn’t know when she became his best friend but now, he cannot imagine his life without the spunky, blonde eighteen-year-old who called him out in the middle of a club.

“Besides it’s not as if your parents would really be that impressed with you bringing a girl like me home.” She comments casually as he walks back to his closet and Oliver frowns, pulling a few more shirts off their hangers before he turns to look at her.

“What do you mean?” He asks and Felicity sits up, shrugging her shoulders.

“Well from what you’ve told me, your family seems like the kind that cares about status and well, I’ve got none of that. I’m just some random girl who grew up in a one-bedroom apartment off the dodgy end of the strip in Vegas. I’m sure that’s not who they envisioned their son would… be friends with.”

He notices her hesitancy within her last sentence and files that away for later before he settles down on the bed next to her, reaching out to tuck her hair behind her ear so that he can see her face.

“Hey, even if my parents did think like that, which they don’t by the way, I don’t think like that. You are the best thing to happen to me Felicity Smoak, and when you meet my parents, notice my use of when because I will make it happen, they will be as immediately charmed as I was. You are incredible, smart, brilliant, and beautiful. That’s a lot more important than how many zeros there are on your bank balance.” He tells her honestly, smiling when the sides of her lips quirk up too. “Now come on, it’s my last night in town before I go back home for two weeks. You owe me a Die Hard viewing after we watched Lord of the Rings last week.”

“Only if there’s popcorn.” She tells him, her eyes narrowing and Oliver laughs.

“Duh, I’m not an animal.” He winks and Felicity giggles, leaning her head against his shoulder.

“I’m going to miss you, pretty boy.” She sighs softly and Oliver smiles, turning to press a kiss to the top of her head.

“I’m gonna miss you too, Brainiac.”

* * *

“Ollie!”

Oliver grins at the sound of his baby sister’s voice and he braces himself. In seconds, his arms are full of his ten-year-old sister and he laughs, easily spinning Thea around.

“I missed you Speedy.” He grins, squeezing her tightly before he lowers her carefully back down to the ground.

“There’s so much to tell you, Ollie! I made loads of new friends while you’ve been away and I got nearly all As on my last report card! Mom says I can go to college just like you when I’m older!” Thea grins and Oliver smiles, glad that he’s finally done something his little sister can look up to.

“That’s amazing Speedy. I’m so proud of you.” He tells her before ruffling her hair, laughing as she grumbles loudly.

“Oliver.”

His mother’s voice is soft and affectionate and Oliver smiles as he finds himself swept into her embrace. She smells of the same perfume that she’s worn since he was little and Oliver realizes just how much he’s missed her.

“It’s so good to have you home.” She smiles as they pull away and Oliver smiles.

“Glad to be here.” He tells her honestly and kisses her cheek before he turns to his father who extends his hand.

“I spoke to my old friend on the phone this morning. You’ve done an excellent job of turning this semester around. I’m proud of you, son.”

_I’m proud of you._

After years of failing, years of being nothing but a disappointment, Oliver never expected how much those words would affect him.

“Thank you, Dad, that… that really means a lot.” Oliver tells his father, willing himself not to tear up.

“Come here.” Robert smiles and Oliver grins as he hugs his father for the first time in years. “You have done everything I always hoped you were capable of. This is the man I always knew you could be.”

“Thank you for supporting me even though it took me so long to see the light,” Oliver replies honestly, stepping back from his father’s embrace to his mother’s proud expression.

“What prompted your change of heart?” His mother asks, taking his father’s hand as they move to stand next to each other. Thea grins and moves to cling to Oliver’s hand, staring adoringly up at her brother who chuckles and ruffles her hair.

“Don’t misunderstand me, but it was a girl,” Oliver admits, watching with an odd sense of pride as shock cover both his parents’ faces.

“A girl? I thought girls were what was distracting you from work.” Robert questions with a raised eyebrow but an amused smirk playing at his lips. Oliver matches the smile, shrugging his shoulders. 

“Not this girl. She’s like no one I’ve ever met before. Driven, funny, ridiculously intelligent… she’s just brilliant really.” He rattles off, his smile growing involuntarily as he thinks about the girl who has flipped his life on its head. She really is the best thing to ever happen to him and he’s so grateful to her for everything she’s done. 

“Ollie’s in love!” Thea croons from his side and Oliver scoffs with a roll of his eyes.

“We’re not like that, Thea. We’re friends.” He finds himself immediately defending to his baby sister. It’s not that he truly believes his words, he thinks it’s quite clear that he and Felicity are at the very least open to being slightly more than friends, but they haven’t defined anything and nothing they’ve done is outside the parameters of friendship especially.

It’s just the way his heart beats that little bit faster whenever he thinks of her.

“Sure, but Luke and Lorelai were just friends.” Thea states confidently and Oliver can’t help but laugh at that.

“And life is not Gilmore Girls, Speedy.” He reminds the girl who smiles up at him again, unfazed by his criticism of her analogy and favorite show.

“So this girl, she goes to Harvard too?” His mother’s voice draws his attention back up to his parents who are regarding him and Thea with warm, sentimental expressions. A few months ago Oliver would have rolled his eyes but instead, he smiles and straightens up.

“No, MIT. Her major is Computer Studies and Cyber Security.” He explains, thinking of how much time he’s spent watching Felicity type away at her laptop.

“Really?” Robert questions, his eyebrows rising in surprise and Oliver chuckles. His dad never could resist a technology expert.

“Yeah, QC could use a mind like hers actually. She’s always designing new programs and algorithms.” He slides in, knowing that Felicity would actually kill him if she found out. He doesn’t particularly mind though. It’s not as if he’s directly telling his dad to hire her and he can’t help his father’s interest in the technological minds of the future.

“I didn’t even know you knew how to pronounce algorithm,” Moira comments dryly but with an impressed smile that Oliver returns with a shrug. He starts to reply sarcastically but the appearance of another figure in the hallway draws his attention.

“Raisa!” He exclaims with a grin, turning to face the cook excitedly.

“Mr. Oliver! I make your favorite to celebrate your homecoming!” She replies with a wide and welcoming smile of her own that makes Oliver feel as if he’s truly at home.

“I’ve missed your cooking, Raisa. I can’t wait. But I’ve missed your company more.” He tells her honestly, disentangling himself from Thea to walk over and place a gentle hand on Raisa’s shoulder. The older woman smiles affectionately, tilting her head as she regards Oliver.

“You are too sweet, Mr. Oliver.” She tells him, reaching up to pat his cheek before she smiles and turns heading back down the corridor towards the kitchen. Oliver turns back to his parents to see them regarding him with expressions that he’s not at all used to but that he can recognize as pride.

He finds he quite likes it.

Later that night, once his stomach has been filled with Raisa’s incredible cooking and he’s satisfied Thea’s attention cravings for the day, he’s unpacking his things in his room when there’s a knock at the door.

“Come in!” He calls out as he places a hoodie on a hanger in the closet and smiles as his mother steps into the room. “Hey Mom, you okay?”

“This girl, what’s her name?” Moira questions, stepping towards him with a soft smile. Oliver stills where he is, shocked at the abruptness of the question, but he smiles after a moment, following his mom to the bed and sitting next to her on it.

“Felicity. Felicity Smoak.” He replies, that same dopey smile from earlier crossing his face as he thinks of her. His mother tilts her head, smiling amusedly at him, but Oliver makes no effort to school his reaction.

“Do you have a picture?” Moira asks, raising a gentle eyebrow and Oliver smirks.

“Yeah.” He tells her, reaching for the camera he just got out his bag and pulling up his recent photos. His most recent one of Felicity is of her on his bed at college in the midst of laughter. She’s so carefree, head thrown back and her eyes sparkling with mirth, and the mere sight of her smile has Oliver grinning like the cat that caught the canary. “She’d killed me if she knew I just showed you that.”

“She’s beautiful.” His mother comments, lingering on the photo with a tender smile of her own.

“She is, but it’s funny. For the first time ever, that’s not the reason I want to spend time with this girl.” Oliver answers truthfully, his mother’s warm expression encouraging him to be open with her. Plus, the mere thought of Felicity has him wanting to scream from the rooftops how incredible she is.

“Why do you like spending time with her?” Moira presses, keeping her tone light and inquisitive, even though Oliver knows it’s an interrogation of sorts.

“She makes me feel calm. When I’m with her, it’s like all that matters is the two of us in that moment. The rest of the world, it doesn’t exist, and I just want to make that moment last for as long as I can.”

The words flow out of Oliver before he can stop them, coming truthfully and unguarded. He’s never sat down and considered his feelings towards Felicity like this before. He hasn’t thought much of it really, past knowing that she makes him incredibly happy and he enjoys spending time with her. As he speaks, however, he knows that what he says is true.

Felicity has completely changed his perspective over the past few months and somehow wormed her way into being the most important person in his life.

“Oh, Oliver…” His mother comments and he’s baffled to see tears forming in her eyes when he looks up at her.

“Mom? What?” He questions, leaning forward in imploration. Moira shakes her head, smiling softly as she lifts her hands to wipe her eyes.

“You’re in love.” She states simply after a deep breath and Oliver freezes, the three words crashing into him like a brick wall.

“No, I’m… what do you…?” He immediately defends but as he searches for the words to say to deny his mother’s claim, he cannot find them. She’s right, after all these months and all that time together, Oliver Queen is in love with the kind of girl he’d have never looked twice at all those months ago.

Now he wants nothing more than to spend every waking hour in her company.

“Shit.”

His revelation is particularly badly timed as his phone starts to ring loudly, lighting up with _Brainiac_ blazoned on the screen. Oliver’s heart skips at the thought of speaking to Felicity, but he also knows that he doesn’t want to give up an opportunity to hear her voice.

“Is that her now?” Moira questions, gesturing to the phone and Oliver nods, picking it up with a smile.

“Yeah.”

“I’ll leave you alone.” His mother smiles, leaning over to softly kiss his cheek before she makes her way to the door. “Oliver?”

“Hmm?” He asks, looking over to where she’s stopped by the doorway.

“Don’t mess this up. I may not know much about her, but if she’s turned your world upside down in this way, there’s something special about her.” Moira commands him with a gentle smile and Oliver smiles too, knowing that she’s right as her words sink in.

“I’m gonna really try, Mom.” He assures her with a nod, settling back more comfortably on his bed.

“Promise?” She asks, raising an eyebrow and Oliver smiles softly with a nod.

“Promise.” He answers, gaining another small smile from his mother as she slips out the door and closes it behind her. It takes Oliver no time at all to flick his phone open and answer the call, holding it close to his ear as his smile grows at the thought of speaking to Felicity. “Hey, Brainiac.”

The voice on the other end of the line starts speaking at a million miles a minute but Oliver just smiles, leaning back against the bed and allowing her voice to sink into his bones and warm his body with its light.

He never would have thought months ago that he’d be here, certainly in love with a girl who rejected his advances in a grimy bar one Thursday night, but now that he is, he knows he wouldn’t change it for absolutely anything.


End file.
